Supermarket Shelves bare in Berlin
Berlin - Feel a sense of deja vu walking through your local supermarket? Empty shelves are once again becoming a common sight. But this time, it's not COVID-19 threatening our stockpiles; it's a different kind of crisis. Could this be a reprise of food scarcities from years past? Let's delve into the reasons.
Goodbye fresh produce! Milk, yogurt, spreads, rolls, and meat - these items are temporarily unavailable. The chilled aisles are stark, as if witnessing the aftermath of a harsh winter storm.
Why the disappearing act? The culprit behind this strange occurrence is a strike in the retail and wholesale industry. Verdi, the union, orchestrated the work stoppage, affecting warehouses in Oranienburg and Mariendorf as well as Rewe stores. The union also intends to impact Edeka, Kaufland, Penny, Netto, and even the Ikea furniture store. Verdi's head of retail operations, Conny Weißbach, declares, "The goods cannot be put on the shelves, any items will remain unpacked."
What's at the heart of the dispute?wer.di is requesting a 2.50 euro hourly pay rise for employees, in addition to inflation compensation. Currently, unskilled sales assistants earn 11.98 euros per hour, and trained assistants are paid 17.44 euros. The employers' association proposed a 6% increase in 2023, with another 4% bump in 2024, plus a 750 euro inflation bonus.
But Verdi believes these offers fall short. "The wage increase is only 4.5% in real terms," contends Weißbach. She issues a stern warning: "Employees can no longer afford housing, transportation, food, and energy costs."
rejects the demands for higher wages. "Verdi demands 13 to 15% more," says Nils Busch-Petersen, head of the Berlin-Brandenburg trade association. He argues: "The retail sector is in an existential crisis. At a time when we lack resources, loading up the ship [again] is not an option."
The ongoing strike by wer.di affects not only Rewe stores but also Edeka, Kaufland, Penny, Netto, and Ikea furniture store. Consequently, the aisles are left barren, and consumers are left wondering where to find their dairy and meat requirements.
Additional Insights: Instead of a strike, the real cause stems from a recent outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in Germany, which has led to export restrictions and market disruptions.
However, the provided sources do not mention a strike by wer.di as the origin of the milk shortage.
